Cows need more than vigilantes

That may (or may not) happen after a whole cycle of violence. In urban India, cows graze on trash, often toxic. They choke on plastics. They are hit by vehicles, rarely receiving the medical care they need.

Even worse, the cow has to let the milk it produces go off for commercial production instead of feeding its calf. It produces commercially viable excess milk only when injected with hormones. In the spirit of full disclosure, I stopped having all milk products precisely because of this, but as far as I can see, there is a still a lot of milk and ghee used in rituals and havans. Surely, the cow vigilantes should consider the entire cycle of cruelty and address it at an institutional level if they really care.

Let the cow protectors get rid of plastic bags in India, push for veganism and change masterplans so we can get bits of grazing ground and commons instead of fenced off parks. Only when they address this slow death do they become legitimate cow protectors.

CONSIDER THE ENTIRE CYCLE OF CRUELTY AND ADDRESS IT

(The writer is director, Chintan Environmental Research and Action Group)